The present invention relates to a connector, in particular, to a connector comprising a first connector and a second connector, the first connector and the second connector sliding on each other in a fitting direction to be fitted with each other.
As a connector of this type, for example, JP 4-308674 A discloses a connector as illustrated in FIG. 13. The connector connects a pair of electronic circuit boards 1A and 1B to each other and comprises a first connector 2A mounted on one electronic circuit board 1A of the pair of electronic circuit boards and a second connector 2B mounted on the other electronic circuit board 1B.
The first connector 2A has a structure in which a plurality of female contacts 4A and a plurality of male contacts 5A are alternately arranged in an arrangement direction R in a housing 3A made from an insulator. Each of the female contacts 4A has its full length in a fitting direction enclosed by the housing 3A, and each of the male contacts 5A is held such that a tip portion thereof protrudes from the housing 3A in the fitting direction.
Similarly, the second connector 2B has a structure in which a plurality of female contacts 4B and a plurality of male contacts 5B are alternately arranged in the arrangement direction R in a housing 3B made from an insulator. Each of the female contacts 43 has its full length in the fitting direction enclosed by the housing 3B, and each of the male contacts 5B is held such that a tip portion thereof protrudes from the housing 3B in the fitting direction.
As the electronic circuit boards 1A and 1B come close to each other, the male contacts 5A of the first connector 2A come into contact with the female contacts 4B of the second connector 2B while the male contacts 5B of the second connector 2B come into contact with the female contacts 4A of the first connector 2A, whereby the first connector 2A and the second connector 2B are connected with each other.
However, since the housing 3A of the first connector 2A encloses the respective female contacts 4A, there exists, between each of the female contacts 4A and an adjacent male contact 5A, an insulator wall 6A made of the insulator forming the housing 3A. Similarly, since the housing 3B of the second connector 2B encloses the respective female contacts 4B, there exists, between each the female contacts 4B and an adjacent male contact 5B, an insulator wall 6B made of the insulator forming the housing 3B.
Accordingly, when the width, in the arrangement direction R, of each of the female contacts 4A and 4B is denoted by D1, the width of each of the insulator walls 6A and 6B by D2, and the width of each of the male contacts 5A and 5B by D3, a distance between the centers of the female contact 4A and of an adjacent male contact 5A or between the centers of the female contact 4B and of an adjacent male contact 5B represents an arrangement pitch P, which has a value not smaller than a sum of D1/2, D2 and D3/2. In other words, the arrangement pitch P is expressed by the following expression:P≧D1/2+D2+D3/2   (1),and it was difficult to decrease the arrangement pitch P.